This Day in History, Sept. 13

Thursday

Sep 12, 2013 at 7:22 PM

On this date in 1959, Elvis Presley first met his future wife, 14-year-old Priscilla Beaulieu, while stationed in West Germany with the U.S. Army. (They married in 1967, above, but divorced in 1973.) Today is Friday, Sept. 13, the 256th day of 2013. There are 109 days left in the year. The Jewish Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, begins at sunset.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Sept. 13, 1788, the Congress of the Confederation authorized the first national election, and declared New York City the temporary national capital.

On this date:

▪In 1759, during the final French and Indian War, the British defeated the French on the Plains of Abraham overlooking Quebec City.

▪In 1803, Commodore John Barry, considered by many the father of the American Navy, died in Philadelphia.

▪In 1912, a state funeral was held in Japan for Emperor Meiji.

▪In 1948, Republican Margaret Chase Smith of Maine was elected to the U.S. Senate; she became the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress.

▪In 1962, Mississippi Gov. Ross Barnett rejected the U.S. Supreme Court's order for the University of Mississippi to admit James Meredith, a black student, declaring in a televised address, "We will not drink from the cup of genocide."

▪In 1970, the first New York City Marathon was held; winner Gary Muhrcke finished the 26.2-mile run, which took place entirely inside Central Park, in 2:31:38.

▪In 1971, a four-day inmates' rebellion at the Attica Correctional Facility in western New York ended as police and guards stormed the prison; the ordeal and final assault claimed the lives of 32 inmates and 11 employees.